Corpse headrest



5. H. HANSON CORPSE HEADREST Jan. 20, 1942.

Filed Aug. 50, 1940 INVENTQR AT oRmEY. I

Patented Jan. 20, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 9 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in head rests and more particularly to head rests used by embalmers in preparing a corpse.

In the use of head rests as heretofore devised difficulties have been encountered in properly supporting a heavy subject having surplus fat around the neck and lower jaws. It has been found that when the head is raised and supported on the ordinary head rest the vertebrae are distended or constricted causing the blubber of the lower jaws and neck to be pushed out and giving an unnatural and disfiguring appearance to the subject. a

It is therefore an object of the present invention to obviate the above objections by providing an improved head rest having means in addition to the usual head support for effectively supporting the rear of the neck below the base of the skull in a manner to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device having an auxiliary supporting arm as above described which is angularly adjustable from an ineffective out of the way position to a useful position and which can therefore be selectively used or not as conditions require.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide in a head rest device an auxiliary supporting arm having a concave engaging end adapted to effectively fit on each side of the vertebrae below the base of the skull to apply proper pressure to said vertebrae and also to prevent the head from slipping sideways, while interfering in no way with the work of the embalmer.

A further object of the invention is to provide in a head rest device having a bar adapted to be adjustably supported in an inclined position, a head rest adjustably supported on said bar, and an auxiliary supporting arm also supported on said bar and adjustable to a desired angle with respect thereto and with respect to the angle of adjustment of the head support.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a construction as above described wherein the pawl for adjustably supporting the bar has a common pivot axis with the auxiliary supporting arm.

A further object of the invention is to provide a. head rest wherein the main bar is hollowed to receive the supporting pawl for said bar as well as the auxiliary supporting arm and its pawl whereby the device may be collapsed to compact condition when not in use.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a head rest device as above described wherein the head support is mounted in a novel manner to permit a variety of adjustments for most effective use.

A further object of the invention is to provide a head rest device which is well adapted for use with all types of subjects whether the necks are long, short, stout, or thin, and a device which even enables the mortician to properly pose round shouldered subjects without difficulty.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists of the improved head rest and all its parts and combinations as set forth in the claims and all equivalents thereof.

In the accompanying drawing illustrating one complete embodiment of the preferred form of the invention in which the same reference numerals designate the same parts in all of the views:

Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional View through the device with the head support proper shown in full, the dot-and-dash lines indicating collapsed position of the parts.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the supporting bar and base showing the parts in collapsed condition, part of the base being broken away;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view on a small scale illustrating the parts in one position of adjustment; and Fig. 4 is a side view of the head support looking in a direction opposite to that of Fig. 1.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, numeral 5 designates a base which is preferably of Y-form in plan view'having three supporting feet 6 such as the suction cups illustrated. A bar I has one end pivotally connected to the base as at 8 and said bar has a hollowed portion 9 forming a pocket with a rack H1 at the bottom of said pocket. Outwardly of the pocket the bar is generally of bifurcated construction com: prising side walls. II and [2. Between the outer ends of the walls H and 12 are pressure disks l3 and I4 having recesses in their adjacent faces which cooperate to form a slot l5. An arm [6 having its lower portion slotted as at I! is adjustably movable in the slot 15 between the two pressure disks l3 and I4 as shown in Fig. 1. An adjustment rod l8 has an inner end portion of decreased diameter as at I9 which extends rotatably through registering openings in the side wall l2, pressure disk I4, slot I! in the arm l6, and through an opening in the pressure disk [3. The extreme inner end of the rod i8 is threaded into the wall I I. It is clear that when the handle 20 is rotated the shoulder 2| on the rod will bear against the wall l2 and tend to compress said wall toward the wall H, thereby causing the disks I3 and 4 to grip the arm l6 and maintain it in a desired position of adjustment. The arm l6 may be adjusted longitudinally or may be rotated by causing the pressure disks l3 and M to rotate around the rod l8 when said rod is loosened.

The arm I6 has its upper end forked as at 22 with the forked ends pivotally connected to a U- shaped head support 23. The head support is angularly adjustable on the fork 22 about alined pivots 24 and may be frictionally clamped in adjusted position by means of clamping handles 25 one of which coacts with one of the pivots 24 and the other of which coacts with a stud 24' riding in a slot 25' as shown in Fig. 4.

An auxiliary supporting arm 26 has its inner end secured by a set screw or the like 21 to a rod 28. The later rod is journalled through the side walls II and [2 of the bar 1 and has one end projecting outwardly and equipped with an operating handle 29. The rod 28 also extends loosely through the bifurcations '30 of a pawl 3| and said pawl is therefore swingable on the rod 28. The lower end of the pawl is engageable with a rack 32 mounted on the base 5 to hold the bar in a desired position of angular adjustment as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3.

The auxiliary supporting arm 26 has a longitudinal slot 33 within which a pawl 34 is pivotally mounted as at 35. The free end of the pawl 34 is cooperable with the rack H) in the bottom of the pocket 9 to hold the auxiliary supporting arm 26 in a desired position of angular adjustment such as the position shown by full lines in Fig. l.

The free end of the supporting member 26 is preferably enlarged and formed with a concave engaging edge 36 to provide spaced parts 31 engageable on each side of the vertebrae at the base of the skull.

When the auxiliary supporting arm 26 is not being used or when the device is collapsed the pawl 34 can be folded into the slot 33 and the supporting arm can then be lowered into the pocket 9 of the bar I. When lowered into this position the enlarged outer end of the supporting arm 26 fits in a recess 38 in the manner shown in Fig. 2.

The entire bar 1 may be lowered to the dotand-dash line position of Fig. 1 when the device is not in use by disengaging the pawl 3| from the rack 32 and lowering the bar, the pawl 3| being accommodated between the spaced side v walls I and 2 at the bifurcated outer end of the bar 1.

In use of the device the bar I is raised manually to a desired inclined position with the end of the pawl 3| sliding over the rack 32 during such raising movement. The pawl will automatically hold the bar in any position in which it is desired to leave the same such as the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3. Next the handle 20 is turned to loosen the pressure on the parts I and I2 whereby the arm I 6 may be moved up and down or partially rotated on the rod l3. When a desired position of adjustment for the arm I6 is obtained, such as the position of Fig. 1 or Fig. 3, then the handle 26 is rotated to tighten the parts and hold the arm fri-ctionally in the desired position. The U-shaped head support 23 may also be tilted to a desired angle by loosening the handles 25.

If a heavy subject is being prepared, or if it is otherwise necessary, the auxiliary supporting arm 26 may be raised by merely turning the handle 29. During such turning movement the pawl 34 will slip over the rack ID to automatically hold the arm in a desired tilted position. The back of the subjects head is adapted to rest on the U- shaped head rest 23 and the ends 31 of the concavity 36 on the auxiliary arm 26 fit on opposite sides of the vertebrae below the base of the skull. Where a heavy subject is being prepared the auxiliary arm 26 may support the main portion of the load. Due to the thinness of the arm 26 at its outer end there is little interference with the work of the embalmer and surplus fat may be worked around to the rear of the neck where it is not noticeable. Furthermore, by supporting the subject on each side of the vertebrae below the base of the skull the distention and constriction of the vertebrae are relieved and unnatural appearance is avoided. Due to the variety of adjustments possible for the bar I, arm l6, head rest 23, and arm 26 the device may be readily adapted for use on a wide variety of subjects.

Although only one form of the invention has been shown and described it is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and all of such changes are contemplated as may come within the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a head rest device having a base and having a support on which the back of a subjects head is adapted to rest adjustably connected to said base, an auxiliary supporting arm having an adjustable connection with said base and of a length to engage with the neck of a subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support while the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

2. In a head rest device having a base and having a support on which th back of a subjects head is adapted to rest adjustably connected to said base, an auxiliary supporting arm having an adjustable connection with said base and having an end with spaced parts, said arm being of a length to render said spaced parts engageable on each side of the vertebrae below the base of the skull while the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

3. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar adjustably connected to said base for angular movement in a vertical plane and provided with a support on which the back of a subjects'head is adapted to rest, an auxiliary supporting arm angularly adjustably connected to said bar and of a length to engage with the neck of the subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support while the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

4. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar pivotally connected to said base and provided with a head rest, a pawl pivotally connected to said bar to project below the latter and being engageable with the base to support the bar at a desired angle with respect to said base, and an auxiliary supporting arm pivotally connected to said bar and adapted to be projected at an angle thereabove, there being a common pivot axis for the bar supporting pawl and for the auxiliary supporting arm, said auxiliary supporting arm being of a length to engage the neck of a subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support while th head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

5. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar pivotally and adjustably connected to said base and provided with a head rest, a pivot rod journaled transversely of said bar and having an end projecting laterally and provided with an operating handle, an auxiliary supporting arm having its inner end fixed to said pivot rod whereby the arm is swung to an angle above the bar when the rod is rotated, means for maintaining said auxiliary supporting arm in a desired position of adjustment, said auxiliary supporting arm being of a length to engage the neck of a subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support while the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

6. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar pivotally connected to said base and provided with a head rest, a pivot rod journaled transversely of said bar and having an end projecting laterally and provided with an operating handle, an auxiliary supporting arm having its inner end fixed to said pivot rod whereby the arm is swung to an angle above the bar when the rod is rotated, means for maintaining said auxiliary supporting arm in a desired position of adjustment, and a pawl swingable on said pivot rod to project below the bar and engageable with the base to support the bar at a desired angle with respect to said base, said auxiliary supporting arm being of a length to engage the neck of a subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support while the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

7. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar adjustably connected to said base for angular movement in a vertical plane and provided with a head rest, an auxiliary supporting arm pivotally connected to the bar inwardly of the head rest, said bar being formed with a pocket and said auxiliary arm being swingable into said pocket when not in use, said auxiliary supporting arm being of a length to engage the neck of a subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support While the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support. I

8. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar adjustably connected to said base for angular movement in a vertical plane and provided with a head rest, an auxiliary supporting arm pivotally connected to the bar inwardly of the head rest, said bar being formed with a pocket, a rack in the bottom of said pocket, a pawl pivoted to said auxiliary supporting arm and engageable with said rack to hold the arm in a desired angular position with respect to said bar, said pawl being swingable into substantial parallelism with said arm, and said arm and pawl being accommodated in said pocket when not in use, said auxiliary supporting arm being of a length to engage the neck of a subject below the place of engagement of the head with the head support while the head is supported on said head support to relieve distention and constriction of the vertebrae occurring as a result of support of the head on said head support.

9. In a head rest device having a base and having a bar adjustably connected to said base for angular movement in a vertical plane, an extension arm pivotally connected to said bar for angular movement in a vertical plane, means at said pivotal connection for varying the effective length of the extension arm, means for maintaining said extension arm in a desired position of angular and extensible adjustment, and a support, on which the back of a subjects head is adapted to rest, angularly adjustably connected to said extension arm.

STEPHEN H. HANSON. 

